James 4:7-12
“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sister or judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it. There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbor?”
James 4:7-12 NIV
Let's admit it. Most of us would like for spiritual growth to be easy. We want our ability to withstand tempation to require little effort. We want the Holy Spirit to do the work and God to protect us from too much stress and strain. Thankfully, God does empower us through his Holy Spirit. However, he does remind us that for the Spirit to work powerfully in our lives, we must intentionally submit our wills to God and we must resist the devil. If we will put up a fight against him and his temptations, he will flee from us.
As Christians, we are not under law but under grace. As God's children who are saved by grace through faith in Christ, we can walk in spirit and truth or we can live our life in the lust of the flesh. We can yield to the work of the Holy Spirit within OR we can submit to the evil influences of Satan.
As believers, we can allow sin to rule and reign in our mortal body and give in to the sinful desires of our fleshly nature or we can consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. We can allow sin and Satan to have authority over our bodies or, by the power of the Holy Spirit, we can nail our old sin nature to the Cross and present our members to God as instruments for righteousness, holy and acceptable unto God. We have these choices because we are not under law but under grace.
When temptation hammers on the door of our mind, we are to simply say no. We are to decline that sinful temptation and turn down that lustful desire. We are to refuse that fleshly fancy and resist the devil and all his devious schemes, designed to coax us into a multiplicity of sinful activities that would discredit our testimony and dishonour our God. When we resist satan, he will flee from us.
Praise God that, in the power of the Holy Spirit, we have authority over our bodies to present our members to God as instruments for righteousness, holy and acceptable unto God, for we are not under law but under grace. Not only is salvation given to all who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as a free gift of God's grace, but His ongoing favour is readily available to every believer, as we journey along the path of life.
Having been born again of the Spirit, we are called to trust in the Lord with all our heart. We also have a biblical responsibility to walk in His ways and humble ourselves before His face, as outlined in the epistle of James.
James reminds us of an important biblical principle that is found throughout the pages of Scripture: "God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble." The Lord withstands self-important, arrogant men, but supplies His sufficient grace to those that are meek and lowly of heart.
God alone knows the thoughts of a man. Only God understands the motives behind a man's actions and attitude. Only God has the authority to judge righteously. The judging of others does not belong to a Christian, rather it usurps the authority of God for no one knows the heart of another, save God alone.
James teaches that the tongue is a small member of our body, which can be used for good or evil. May we guard our hearts and bridle our tongues with all vigilance, for out of it can flow springs of life or the curses of death. May we be careful not to become judgemental, or to speak against one another for to do so violates God's holy law, speaks against the law and judges the law rendering us judges of the law, instead of doers of God's Word!!!
Father, thank You for this day and that we are no longer under the domain of Satan but are a child of God who is under grace and not under the Law. Let Your abundant blessings flow from the storehouses of heaven over my friend and family today. Lord, we pray that we may walk in spirit and truth to Your praise and honor. In Your power, we pray that we will resist the influences of the world, the flesh, and the devil. Lord, help us to walk in meekness, purity, spirituality, and sincerity all the days of our lives to Your praise and glory. Lord, use us to be the light of Your Gospel today to all. Be a blessing.
Father, we love You. Amen !
Comments